Moving models about.

[miken]

I'm always interested in how people get their models from place to place as they can be large and heavy.
When I started model engineering I built an smallish 5" gauge "Butch". I had a small car and a small trailer and that worked ok.
Then I built a larger tender loco and it became a bit more difficult.
When I built my 6" Ruston Proctor tractor I had to get a bigger car and quite large 4 wheel trailer.
Now I'm back on 5" gauge Ive tried putting them in the back of an estate car, but that just ruins the inside of the vehicle.
Then I made an attachment that fitted to my tow bar and they sort of hung off the back. That didnt do the rear suspension of my car much good.

So, Ive now returned to using a small homemade trailer, and over the last few days Ive been working on this latest arrangement to hopefully do away with most of the unpleasant lifting and shifting.

My 2 biggest locos live on their carrying frame on their own trolley. This is then wheeled out to dock with the trailer. Then the top rolls onto the trailer in a "Thunderbirds are Go" sort of way. The loco is then bolted firmly to the trailer.

How do you shift your engine?

[ettingtonliam]

Thats an interesting towing vehicle- Austin A40 perhaps?

[miken]

Apr 25, 2021 19:08:01 GMT ettingtonliam said:

Thats an interesting towing vehicle- Austin A40 perhaps?

Correct, 1954

[steamer5]

Hi Miken,
Dad & I both have our locos on a wheeled stand for storage. Both stands have a short length...about 8 or 10” long that pivots down to align with the rails on the trailer. The trains are rolled from the stand to the trailer & bolted down, the rails on the trailer form part of a cage that the locos go in so a canvas cover can be put over the top to keep the weather out while travelling.
The one thing we do have & found out almost the hard way that I can’t see in your photos, is 2 short lengths of chain the hold the transport trolley to the trailer while moving the trains on to or off the trailer! Dad lives a lone & had the transporter move while transferring the loco....it almost ended in disaster!

Cheers Kerrin

[miken]

Apr 25, 2021 21:33:48 GMT steamer5 said:

Hi Miken,

The one thing we do have & found out almost the hard way that I can’t see in your photos, is 2 short lengths of chain the hold the transport trolley to the trailer while moving the trains on to or off the trailer! Dad lives a lone & had the transporter move while transferring the loco....it almost ended in disaster!

Cheers Kerrin

Kerrin,
Yes, it would be disappointing if a loco fell off.
I've got braked castors on my trolley, but your suggestion of chains sounds better than relying on them.
Thanks , Mike.

[92220]

That's a handy way to transport!! One point about the trailer though...You should have mudguards over the wheels by law, to protect following vehicles in bad weather. You could get stopped and a ticket.

Bob.

[oldnorton]

Nice set of trolleys Miken and well planned handling. I see you weld in aluminium which I admire. I have stuck to steel, which means I have to paint everything. I have used polyurethane tyred wheels on my trolleys which are rated to 250kg but give a nice ride over concrete and paving.

I have had thoughts about the quality of ride an engine might get on a trailer. I have had box trailers and motorcycle trailers and they bounce badly if they have not got sufficient weight to fully load the rubber suspension. The lack of damping perhaps adds to the problem. What do you think the ride will be like?

Norm

[rrmrd66]

Morning all.

This is excellent.

More examples please, including pic's. We must all have this problem.

Any suggestions about loading systems into the back of a small van (Transit Connect).

Cheers

Malcolm

[92220]

This is the crane I bought off Ebay for £175.00 collected:-

EDIT:   The photos didn't come out as expected. I'll try again.

Bob.

[Midland]

Interesting topic! My Princess of Wales lives in her own box with a bit of padding and goes straight into the back of the car. My Peugeot estate would take her with the back setas up but the merc one requires the back seats down. To and from the car is through a boot level hatch in the end of the workshop and a 'bridge' to the car. Use some old broomstick rollers and it is a one man job.
The 990 is not in a box but has her own 'bridge' with a pair of rails. I have to position the car very carefully, get the LH mirror exactly next the stainless washer in the fence, and she rolls gently over the bridge into another board with rails in the back of the car. Lashing her down is a bit awkward due to the positioning of the rings but at least she is tucked in tight and secure.
I must say the 'open' trailer is eloquent but would frighten me, what if it fell off at 60 mph real speed!!!
Cheers David

[miken]

Apr 26, 2021 9:00:34 GMT oldnorton said:

Nice set of trolleys Miken and well planned handling. I see you weld in aluminium which I admire. I have stuck to steel, which means I have to paint everything. I have used polyurethane tyred wheels on my trolleys which are rated to 250kg but give a nice ride over concrete and paving.

I have had thoughts about the quality of ride an engine might get on a trailer. I have had box trailers and motorcycle trailers and they bounce badly if they have not got sufficient weight to fully load the rubber suspension. The lack of damping perhaps adds to the problem. What do you think the ride will be like?

Norm

Norm,
Actually it's all stainless steel. I can't weld ally.
My club track is only a couple of miles from home, so I will just drive gently and slowly. The Austin isn't built for speed.
Any suggestions for tyre pressures? I've pumped them to 25psi.
Yes, I agree, I should fit mudgaurds.
Mike.

[lennart]

A very interesting solution to move one's model around.

Is it possible to build your own trailer and use it on the open road in the UK?

In Germany where I live this would not be possible. Everything and anything that is moving on the roads here, regardless wether it moves by it's own or is towed by something else needs to be approved by the authorities (TÜV).

If one intends to build his own trailer like you did, there is a tremendous amount of calculations and tests needed before it is allowed to move 1m on the road.

One of my fellow club members therefore bought a commertial 750kg trailer and fixed 2 or 3 rows of 5" track to the wooden floor. IIRC he then bolts his models down to the trailer with some sort of fixtures that fit around the buffers. He lives 80km away from the club track, so it seems to work even on longer distances.

[jem]

Hi Jennart,

same in Spain, but I think not in France!

Jem

[oldnorton]

Apr 26, 2021 12:14:15 GMT miken said:

Actually it's all stainless steel. I can't weld ally.

Any suggestions for tyre pressures? I've pumped them to 25psi.

Ahh, stainless square tube. That's a thought for any future job. Thanks.

I would choose to run the tyres as soft as possible to cushion the ride, but not so soft that they overheat. There will/might be a max load rating in KG and max pressure in PSI/kPa on the tyres, or look up an equivalent size. Then pro-rata the pressure for the actual weight you have on them. Just my idea, don't tell me off if anyone is a tyre manufacturer.

Can you build your own trailer in the UK? Well we can at the moment I think, up to 750kg total weight and unbraked. Just has to comply with lighting (and mudguards) regs.

The UK is quite good for letting us get on with things. You can reassemble a 40 year old car or motorbike from a pile of bits and legally use it on the road with no longer a need for a MOT, just insurance.

Norm

[92220]

If that trailer is made of stainless, it is far far better than anything that could be bought commercially, which can eventually rust away, being of ordinary mild steel!! Stainless is not easy stuff to weld tidily!!

Bob.

[92220]

Apr 26, 2021 11:51:42 GMT 92220 said:

This is the crane I bought off Ebay for £175.00 collected:-

EDIT:   The photos didn't come out as expected. I'll try again.

Bob.

I used Flickr to try and post the crane photos but they seem to have changed the way you get the BBCode. I thought I had it but obviously didn't. I've messed around for ages trying to find the code but haven't managed yet, so I went on to Imgur where I also have an account. This time I think the photos will come out because when I looked back at my write-up for my firebox build, I used Imjur. I had forgotten that. Hopefully the crane pics will come out. It really works a dream and was relatively cheap considering it was in perfect condition when I bought it. The only mods I have done is shorten the jib around 10" to allow it to load easily into the car. Take the casters off and shorten the legs by 6", then refit the casters, and reduce the closed width of the legs by about 2", to enable it to get around the benches and machines in the workshop. Nearly forgot. I shortened the height of the jib too, so that it was capable of lifting the loco off the workbench and lowering it safely to floor level. By shortening the height it also allows the crane to fit underneath a shelf to stow it away. All operations are electric powered. That makes it a lot easier to operate that the usual manual hydraulic crane as supplied as garage equipment. 

























Bob

EDIT:  I picked the wrong photo for the second one down. That was a photo the seller sent me and the crane I almost bought, but when I got there to collect it, he had just sold it and had still had the one I bought, which he let me have at the same price. Actually, lucky for me as it is capable of an extra 50kg lift.

Bob.

[uuu]

I managed to get one of those for £75, also off ebay. It's fantastically stable. I like the mods you've made to it, I may do likewise.

Wilf

[JonL]

Assuming that is an indespension setup on the trailer I'm impressed it compresses the rubber enough to actually have any damping effect. I'd be worried about it skipping around/over, but if you are only going low speed I suppose the risk is reduced.

I built a wooden transport box for my locomotive. The trade off that you get with 3.5" gauge!

[ettingtonliam]

Just to be difficult, why not load the locos into the bed of the A40 and eliminate any trailer issues altogether?

[coniston]

I transport my loco's in the back of my Volvo XC60. I have a board with rails on that is strapped in using the load rings in the car. The loco is then rolled onto this from it's storage trolley (hydraulic adjustable height) then fixed at the front buffers with an angle that bolts over the buffer heads along with a bolted chain fixing on the coupling hook. The back end is fixed with another bar going through the coupling bar. I'll try and get some photos soon and add them.

Chris D